good season

Chapter 189 Chaos (Two chapters combined)

As Yang Shengqiu walked out of the outer study, something flashed by—a cat's tail disappeared behind the holly tree.

It turned out to be a cat.

Yang Shengqiu paid no attention and walked out of the Feng residence with his head held high.

From behind the holly tree, Big Fat Cat cried out: "Sister Demon, how did he find us? That was dangerous!"

Little Demon: [Silly cat, I did it on purpose. I saw him smile.]

Big Fatty: [Sister Yao is amazing!]

Little Demon: [Get lost, stop flattering me, I don't fall for that.]

Before Yang Shengqiu even got home, Zhao Shiqing already knew that he was going to the Ministry of Revenue, and she also knew that he walked out of the Feng residence's outer study with a smile on his face.

This smile, of course, was not because of the vacancy in the Ministry of Revenue, but because of Feng Ke's final promise.

Zhao Shiqing thought to herself, could this be considered a benefit obtained in exchange for being cuckolded?
Zhao Shiqing fell into deep thought; her knowledge was still too limited.

The next day, Yang Shengqiu met Lord Lang.

Lord Lang deliberately chose a restaurant far away from the Hanlin Academy and the Six Ministries and Five Courts to meet with Yang Shengqiu.

Not only that, Lord Lang was also wearing a half-new, half-old cloth robe, making him look like a middle-aged scholar who had repeatedly failed the imperial examinations.

Although news of Feng Yalan falling into the water has spread, reality is always like this: when it comes to people like this, people tend to focus on the victim rather than the perpetrator.

What's more, there were people who fanned the flames.

Even with his keen insight and extensive connections, Feng Ke, despite his cunning, was unable to control the development of public opinion in the first instance.

If it weren't for the emperor's decree, Feng Yalan would have faced only death.

After all, it was two servants who saved her. Even if she offered herself in return, a lady from the Prime Minister's family would probably not offer herself in return to a servant.

Nevertheless, the news of Feng Yalan falling into the water spread like wildfire in a small circle. Although it didn't reach every corner of the city, it was already widely known among the powerful and influential in Beijing.

However, no one seems to care who pushed Feng Yalan into the water.

But Lord Lang felt guilty!
The less anyone mentioned it, the more guilty he felt.

Therefore, he did not invite Yang Shengqiu to his residence, but instead arranged to meet outside.

Upon seeing Lord Lang's attire, Yang Shengqiu immediately guessed what had happened.

After exchanging pleasantries, Yang Shengqiu got straight to the point: "Sir, does Miss Lang have some misunderstanding about me? If so, please point it out. Miss Lang is innocent."

Indeed, even though Yang Shengqiu had become the top scholar in the imperial examination, he still addressed Lord Lang as "Master Dong" when they were alone, placing himself in a very humble position. This ensured that Lord Lang's goodwill towards him did not diminish despite the close relationship between the two.

These few words, however, completely nailed the Lang family father and daughter to the pillar of shame.

Lord Lang hurriedly said, "Not at all. Although my daughter is willful, she would never do such a despicable thing. I asked her, and she said that it was completely unintentional for her to bump into the Fifth Miss. The one who pushed the Fifth Miss into the water was someone else."

Yang Shengqiu remained silent, and Lord Lang was unable to continue speaking.

He waited for Yang Shengqiu to ask who the other person was, but Yang Shengqiu did not ask.

He didn't ask!
I can't talk anymore today.

Lord Lang had no choice but to bite the bullet and say, "There was a Miss Fan who was also there at the time."

Yang Shengqiu looked up at him, his gaze deep, and Lord Lang's heart tightened.

He suddenly realized something.

Whether Yang Shengqiu still calls him Dongweng or not, their relationship is no longer the same as before.

He used to be Yang Shengqiu's biggest backer, but now, Yang Shengqiu has Feng Ke behind him.

There was even the Third Prince.

Whether it was Lang Yuyu or Fan Qiuyun who pushed Miss Feng into the water, it didn't matter to Yang Shengqiu.

He proposed to Feng Yalan for personal gain.

His refusal to marry Feng Yalan was also for his own benefit.

Even when Feng Yalan fell into the water, he was still someone who benefited!

Lord Lang's heart sank.

Whatever Fan Qiuyun's motives, she must have been profiting from it.

When Feng Yalan fell into the water, Fan Qiuyun, who pushed her, benefited, as did the person who instigated it. The Fifth Prince also benefited from gaining a beautiful woman for free. Feng Ke gained sympathy by playing the victim in front of the Emperor, and Yang Shengqiu, who seemed to have been cuckolded, clearly maximized his own interests by using the incident.

Even the victim, Feng Yalan, went from marrying a poor scholar to becoming a concubine of a prince.

In other words, everyone involved in this matter, except for the Lang family, benefited!

Only the father and daughter were injured.

After this incident, Lang Yuyu will never be able to marry into the Third Prince's residence, not only the Third Prince's residence, but she will never be able to enter any of the princes' residences.

Moreover, the noble families and imperial relatives in the capital would not allow her to enter their homes.

This incident ruined not Feng Yalan, but Lang Yuyu, his daughter!
When Lord Lang left, he looked as if he had aged ten years.

Meanwhile, the Third Prince's wife, Feng Jiahe, was in a daze.

Her father had just sent someone to tell her that the person who pushed Feng Yalan into the water was someone else, not Lang Yuyu, but Fan Qiuyun!
Feng Jiahe could hardly believe her ears. If such a person really existed, shouldn't it be that blockhead, the Princess of Qingchuan?
How could it be Fan Qiuyun?
She liked Fan Qiuyun very much. If it weren't for the connection between the Fan family and the Liang Prince's Mansion, she would have even wanted to marry Fan Qiuyun to her fourth brother.

Fourth Brother was born out of wedlock, so marrying Fan Qiuyun wouldn't be considered a disgrace to him. Moreover, the Fan family was wealthy, which would be a help to the Third Prince.

Now her father says that Fan Qiuyun pushed Feng Yalan into the water. How could Feng Jiahe not be surprised?
She thought about it and realized that everyone present had been checked, and no one had mentioned Fan Qiuyun.

How did the father find out?
There's only one possibility: it was Feng Yalan who said it!

Feng Jiahe's face was ashen; it must be that bitch Feng Yalan.

This vile woman has ruined her reputation and is trying to drag someone down with her. She knows that I, the Crown Princess, admire Fan Qiuyun, so she's using words to frame her.

The Third Prince was in a terrible mood these past two days. Just thinking about how he had been blatantly tricked by the Fifth Prince right under his nose in his own residence made him furious.

Just then, Eunuch Liu rushed in from outside: "Third Master, Third Master!"

Seeing that there were other people in the room, Eunuch Liu stopped talking. The Third Prince waved his hand, and the servants in the room obediently withdrew. Only then did Eunuch Liu step forward and lower his voice to say, "Third Master, that brat Liu Xiaozhu has discovered something. People from the Fifth Master's mansion went to the east of the city to inquire about the Fan family, and they even specifically inquired about Miss Fan."

The Third Prince's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that the Fifth Prince had planted someone by his side? Otherwise, why would he have someone investigate Fan Qiuyun?
"Okay, I understand. You may leave."

After leaving, Eunuch Liu was still thinking to himself that it would be understandable if the Third Prince's wife or the Feng family inquired about Miss Fan, since he was the only one present when the Third Prince hugged Fan Qiuyun from behind that day.

The Third Prince's wife's attitude towards Fan Qiuyun did not seem to indicate that she wanted her to enter the mansion.

Unfortunately, the Third Master now relies on the Feng family for everything, and even the position of concubine is not something he can give to whomever he wants.

Eunuch Liu was preoccupied and walked with his head down, almost bumping into someone walking in the opposite direction.

He looked up and was startled to see that it was actually the Third Prince's wife, Feng Jiahe.

Eunuch Liu was about to kneel down when Feng Jiahe said, "No need, just be careful when you walk!"

Eunuch Liu stepped aside and watched as Feng Jiahe and her entourage marched in a grand procession toward the Third Prince's study.

As soon as Feng Jiahe entered the study, she couldn't wait to tell the Third Prince what her father had sent her. The Third Prince sneered, "This is clearly the work of the Fifth Prince. He's trying to create a mystery and smear Miss Fan. Do you know that the Fifth Prince's men went to the east of the city to inquire about the Fan family, especially about Miss Fan?"

Feng Jiahe was shocked: "It seems that the Fifth Prince doesn't understand the Fan family at all, otherwise he wouldn't need to inquire now. But why would Fifth Sister say that Qiu Yun pushed her into the water?"

The Third Prince snorted coldly; he had already figured this out long ago.

"Lang Yuyu isn't that cunning. She was probably just used by Feng Yalan. I suspect that the Fifth Prince and Feng Yalan have been having an affair for a long time, which is why he staged this whole thing. Not only did he ruin the marriage between Yang Shengqiu and Feng Yalan, but he could also openly bring Feng Yalan into the Prince's residence. He killed two birds with one stone. That scoundrel, the Fifth Prince, I really underestimated him before!"

The more she trusted her younger brother before, the more wary she is now.

In the eyes of the Third Prince, the Fifth Prince was already a complete schemer.

Feng Jiahe suddenly realized that she had always known that Feng Yalan, like the Third Aunt, was a born bastard and a vixen.

She was just a lowly concubine's daughter, yet even the top scholar looked down on her. In order to marry into the prince's mansion, she didn't hesitate to be touched and hugged by two servants.

How despicable! So despicable!

And so the matter was settled.

Feng Yalan and the Fifth Prince had a secret affair. In order to cover up this illicit relationship and to achieve their goal of staying together forever, they staged a play at the Third Prince's residence and framed Fan Qiuyun for the affair.

She jumped, he married her; she had nowhere else to go but to jump into his arms.

The Third Prince gritted his teeth. The Fifth Prince must have released the person by his side, otherwise why would he frame Qiu Yun?
Even Feng Jiahe didn't know about his affair with Fan Qiuyun, but Lao Wu did.

Fifth Prince, you wait! My first act upon ascending the throne will be to sever your neck!

At this time, the Fifth Prince had no idea that his people had gone to the east of the city to inquire about the Fan family.

He would never have imagined that the so-called people in the mansion were actually the Fifth Prince's concubines.

Yes, to outsiders, the Fifth Prince's concubines are just people from the Fifth Prince's residence.
When Zhao Shiqing learned about this from Xiao Zhen, she was almost speechless with shock.

The third prince desires to sit on the dragon throne more than ever before.

To sit on the dragon throne, one must first become the crown prince.

Feng Ke was already planning to have the court officials request the appointment of a crown prince for the third time. After this, the position of the third prince as crown prince would be confirmed.

Although the unexpected turn of events involving Feng Yalan occurred, the overall direction remained unchanged, and everything was progressing in the direction he desired.

But as it turned out, Feng Ke was too happy too soon.

The fifth prince suffered from stomach pain and diarrhea in the middle of the night. Although he drank some medicine and the diarrhea stopped by dawn, he was already exhausted.

He was young after all, and after lying down for half a day, he was full of energy again in the afternoon. But in the middle of the night, he had a stomachache again, followed by diarrhea.

This time, the imperial physician dared not treat it as just an upset stomach. He stayed with the Fifth Prince for a whole day, only feeling relieved after confirming that the prince would not have diarrhea again.

But in the middle of the night, the Fifth Prince woke up in pain again; he had diarrhea again.

The imperial physician examined the Fifth Prince's diet, and the Fifth Prince's wife punished the servants around him, including the kitchen staff.

On the fourth night, the Fifth Prince's stomach pain subsided.

The reason lies with the small kitchen and those lackeys; they were the ones who fed the Fifth Prince unclean food.

The Fifth Prince's wife decided to move in to take care of the Fifth Prince herself. Although the Fifth Prince was unwilling, after thinking about it, he did not refuse.

In the following days, the Fifth Prince was fine, but the Third Prince got into trouble.

On the very morning that the court officials were preparing to launch their third petition for the title of prince, the third prince suddenly had a stomachache on his way to court. He didn't have time to go to the latrine and urinated in his carriage.

Having finally arrived at the palace gate, the Third Prince was about to disembark from the carriage when the sensation returned, even more urgent than before.

The Third Prince was unable to attend court; he suffered from severe diarrhea and was carried back to his residence, where he lay for a day.
At first, the Third Prince really thought it was just bad luck on his part, but soon he thought of the Fifth Prince.

The fifth child's diarrhea stopped, but he started having it. Why? It was the fifth child's fault!

In the past few days, the Third Prince has screened all the people around him, and replaced those who could not be fully trusted.

He had just breathed a sigh of relief when this sudden bout of diarrhea made him turn his attention back to the Fifth Prince.

It seems that the people Lao Wu placed by his side are still there!
Otherwise, how could he have fallen for it without anyone noticing?

The imperial physician eventually discovered croton powder in the Third Prince's food, confirming that the Third Prince had indeed been framed.

The Third Prince, considering that today was the day when all the officials were to be appointed, what else could he not understand?
Fifth brother, you have ulterior motives!
At the same time, a young eunuch took out a paper packet. The packet was unfolded, and a gust of wind blew it away, carrying away the remaining powder inside.

The young eunuch smiled slightly, turned and left, concealing his merit and fame.

In the afternoon, Jiang Ping returned to Ruyi Pavilion and said to Xiao Zhen, "Young Master, it's done."

Xiao Zhen said, "Tell him that his stepfather fell into the river and drowned, and his mother has now established a female household with his sister, so no one will dare to beat or scold them anymore."

Jiang Ping said, "He will be happy when he finds out. That child is pitiful. He was sold to be a eunuch by his stepfather when he was seven years old, and his life was ruined. Fortunately, the young master stood up for him."

The Third Prince was still investigating the people around him, and no one noticed the inconspicuous little eunuch, nor would they ever find out about him.

The Third Prince now even has the desire to kill the Fifth Prince; the Fifth Prince is too despicable.

However, the Third Prince's health was far inferior to that of the Fifth Prince. He not only had diarrhea but also developed a high fever. It was five days later before he recovered.

But during those five days, a major event occurred!
An elderly couple with white hair struck the grievance drum at the Dali Temple. According to the rules, striking the grievance drum would first result in forty strokes of the cane. The old wife was willing to take the punishment in place of her husband and endured eighty strokes of the cane by herself.

After only twenty strokes of the cane, the old woman died. The old man, still alive, knelt before the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review and accused the Third Prince of disregarding human life and causing the deaths of his three sons!